Lies, damned lies and United Kingdom lies

As reported in the Scottish newspaper the Herald and on the Scottish National Party website the United Kingdom government (Westminster) has been accused of deliberately downplaying the potential for oil and gas returns ahead of the Scottish independence referendum. They are referring to an article that appeared in the weekly Investors Chronicle that is published by the Financial Times group. The article states that - "We think that Westminster has been deliberately downplaying the potential of the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) ahead of September's referendum on Scottish independence. The Department of Energy has certainly been far more subdued than it was at the time of the February publication of Sir Ian Wood's preliminary findings on the future of offshore oil & gas in the UK. According to the report, the UK economy could generate £200bn over the next 20 years through the recovery of only 3-4bn barrels of North Sea oil and gas. Many analysts believe that the potential is much greater, although energy companies will need to be offered increased tax incentives to stay the course in the North Sea.”

The message for the Scottish electorate is clear. Do not allow the United Kingdom to continue to squander the revenues from North Sea oil as they have done for decades. By voting Yes to independence Scotland can establish an oil fund as the Norwegians have done with a value now of £500 billion. This can then be used for the benefit of Scotland and its citizens.